Stephen Byers yesterday responded to mounting criticism of the Government's handling of the transport system by admitting parts of it had got worse since Labour came to power.

The beleaguered Transport and Regions Secretary opted to take a tell-it-like-it-is approach as he sought to defuse the growing crisis on Britain's railways.

But North Tyneside MP Mr Byers also put his reputation on the line by promising to turn the situation round between now and the next General Election.

His comments came after it emerged that a fellow minister, Peter Hain, had branded the country's transport system "the worst in Europe".

Europe Minister Mr Hain - a key figure on the left of the party - said Labour had failed to tackle the problems on the railways soon enough and should have been more radical in its first term.

He was swiftly slapped down by Downing Street, which has sought to blame the crisis on Tory under-investment and the shambles of rail privatisation.

Tony Blair's spokesman said it was not possible, because of lack of data, to determine which European country had the worst-performing rail system.

"We are clear that the railways are not good enough and we know the passengers know they are not good enough," he said.

But Mr Byers then appeared to go even further than Mr Hain by admitting some parts of the network were worse than in 1997. He said: "Certain aspects of it have got worse under Labour. That's the challenge that lies ahead.

"I am going to be held accountable and the Government will be held accountable at the next election. I want to see real improvements in our railway system by then."

He added: "I want to be judged at the next election on whether I've improved the railways. I've started this job and I'm going to finish it."

Mr Byers said those parts of the network that had got worse included the overcrowded commuter routes into London.

But on a visit to the North-East yesterday, shadow transport secretary Eric Pickles laid into Mr Byers's record.